March 30, 2012

And the new 2012 Graphic 45 Design Team Is...

Hello Fabulous G45ers,

It's the day you've all been waiting for! It's time to announce the new Graphic 45 Design Team for 2012! We know you've all been waiting anxiously to see who made the list! So lets just get right to it!

We want to thank you all for joining us on this very special day. It's been an amazing process of selecting our brand new Design Team for 2012. From our first DT audition announcement, to the picking of our 30 finalists, reviewing their final project submissions, and narrowing it down to the final list, from start to finish this has been a challenging and immensely enriching experience for all of us here at Graphic 45. Picking our new Design Team was not an easy task. The incredible range of talents, skills, and imagination displayed by all of our finalists was extraordinary. For those of you who made the list, we want to give a warm congratulations and welcome you to the team. For those of you who who did not make the list, we want to give our deepest and most sincere thank you for all of your hard work and your incredible talents. We can't stress enough how difficult it was for us to narrow it down the final list. We are entirely grateful to have such inventive and accomplished artists trying out for our Design Team. Thank you to each and every one of you from all of us here at Graphic 45.

And the new Graphic 45 Design Team members for 2012 (in no particular order) are...

Wow, such excitement! Of course we wanted to also bring you some more incredible cards since this is the last day of our card extravaganza! We've had such a great time bringing you this great week of cards and we hope you've all had a lot of fun too! We've got two incredible card designs by Tara Orr and Gloria Stengel. Tara has created a fun sketch and Gloria has prepared a great tutorial! Both of these gorgeous creations are sure to inspire you for some blissful weekend crafting! Is there a family member or friend that could use a little dose of cheer? Why not surprise them with a beautiful hand-made card! Everyone could use a little random crafts of kindness!

Behold this marvelous Olde Curiosity Shoppe card by Tara Orr. This is a perfect example of a card that's great for any occasion! You can also see how Tara recycled Graphic 45 Staples packaging to give some extra color and depth to this gorgeous card! There's even a fun sketch so you can create one of your very own!

Next we have this gorgeous gate fold gift card holder by Gloria Stengel.This amazing creation also features Olde Curiosity Shoppe! This is an incredible way to turn a simple gift into something heartfelt and whimsical. Here Gloria takes you step-by-step into her creative process with a fun tutorial! Take it away, Gloria!

You all know by now that I love to make gift card holders. A gate fold card with an inside pocket makes a quick and easy gift card holder. Creating a simple band to hold the card closed makes this simple project extra special. When you slide off the band and open the "doors" you see the surprise inside!

2. Using a piece of cardstock 2 x 5 inches, create a pocket for the inside of the card. Add adhesive to the sides and bottom of the pocket. (Note: I covered the inside surface BEFORE adding my pocket.)

5. Cover your band with patterned paper, and glue together. Make sure you don't glue it too tight or it won't slip off your card. You may need to adjust your band size, depending on how thick your finished card becomes.

6. Decorate your band as desired. I added a chipboard bike and a sentiment to my band. It's a simple project, but packs big impact, especially when you slip a gift card inside!

I also decorated the back of my card. It looks more finished that way.

We hope you all enjoyed today's big announcement and gorgeous card creations. Big thanks to Tara Orr and Gloria Stengel for their beautiful work today. For more card inspiration be sure to check out our Pinterest Card Pinboard! There's lots to see and tons of stunning ideas to inspire you!

A huge congrats to the final 12!! Very well deserved for all of u! I look forward to seeing all of ur wonderful creations .It was so exciting to b apart of the top 30 finalists for 2012. I will definately try again next year Thanx again G45!

CONGRATS to the new G45 team! I can't believe it has already been a whole year since my term ended. Special shout out to my two DT sisters... WOOOO HOOOOO GLORIA AND JANE! Keep rocking it for the G45 alumni!!!

Congratulations to the new team, it must have been very hard narrowing it down with all the talented people who applied and the wonderful projects sent to you. Glad to see some old friends among the list + some new names. Looks like being a wonderful year! feeling for those who did not make it. Thanks so much for another year, delighted and very excited.

CONGRATULATIONS to all the New Design Team Members! I am so honored to be apart of this AWESOME team for 2012! Thank You! Thank You! YAHOOOOOOO! For all the finalist who tried out, your work is just incredible! I, once again, so honored to be in your company! Y'all Rock!! Jim

Congratulations to the new team!!! Feeling extremely excited and blessed to have made it back for another year! Though saddened to say good bye to some really amazing teamies, this past year of Artist's has been a Dream! Looking forward to getting to work with the next generation of design team members!!!!!!!!

Well done G45..wonderful choices in all the team members, both new ones and old ones rejoining. So looking forward to seeing all the new designs by my favorite designers, Laura and Jim. Such talent, from them and all the team members, and working with such fabulous product makes it that much better. Again, thank you for picking a wonderful team. Cheers from Washington State !!!

More great cards! Thank you for the sketch and the tutorial. That helps people like me to make wonderful creations! It has been a wonderful 2 weeks for me with one week of minis and one week of cards. It just doesn't get any better! Congratulations to the new Design Team. You all have very big shoes to fill!